Stromboli

Italy

38.789°N, 15.213°E; summit elev. 924 m

All times are local (unless otherwise noted)

INGV reported that during 3 and 6-9 June activity at Stromboli was characterized by ongoing Strombolian explosions and degassing from multiple vents within the crater terrace. Explosions from two vents (N1 and N2) in Area N (north crater area, NCA) occurred at a rate of 1-4 per hour, ejecting material 80 m high and producing ash plumes. Explosions from two vents (S1 and S2) in Area C-S (South Central crater area) occurred at a rate of 3-8 per hour, ejecting material 80-150 m high. Gas plumes rose from vent C.

Geologic Background. Spectacular incandescent nighttime explosions at this volcano have long attracted visitors to the "Lighthouse of the Mediterranean." Stromboli, the NE-most of the Aeolian Islands, has lent its name to the frequent mild explosive activity that has characterized its eruptions throughout much of historical time. The small island is the emergent summit of a volcano that grew in two main eruptive cycles, the last of which formed the western portion of the island. The Neostromboli eruptive period took place between about 13,000 and 5,000 years ago. The active summit vents are located at the head of the Sciara del Fuoco, a prominent horseshoe-shaped scarp formed about 5,000 years ago due to a series of slope failures that extend to below sea level. The modern volcano has been constructed within this scarp, which funnels pyroclastic ejecta and lava flows to the NW. Essentially continuous mild Strombolian explosions, sometimes accompanied by lava flows, have been recorded for more than a millennium.